Burden of Inheritence
by Hollyfern
Summary: Peridot reflects on her most recent day and finds a bit of renewal in her purpose in the form of an image of Homeworld.


**Author's Note: ONE-SHOT:** I may or may not go on with this. This idea had been rattling around in my head since Peridot debuted and more fuel was added when I saw her next appearance. Not to mention Steven and friends stumbling upon her escape pod. If I decide to add more to it, it'll be quite long. I don't quite consider Peridot a hero or villain, rather one that does what needs to be done. Enjoy.

* * *

Light seldom peeked through the worm rotted wood that boarded the outside of every window on a barn amidst a golden sea of wheat on the outskirts of Beach City. Despite the outward state of disrepair and decay, the interior was well kempt and spotless as if someone were tending to it though a mouse or two darted about the smoothened floor, rolling spherical masses in the dark. In the middle of the room sat a lone monitor that softly hummed and gave off an eerie olive glow from its displays as it waited.

 _Phew... that was too close._ A quiet sigh disturbed the silence and a few scurrying mice. The doors slowly parted and the sun illuminated a figure whose being matched the color of the glow of the monitor. After the door was shut and secured, the monitor came to life and its glow began to pulse steadily as its matching figure drew closer. "User ID: Peridot. Password: Iolite, Tourmaline, Sardonyx and Citrine."

The monitor quietly beeped a response before displaying covering the entirety of the inside of the barn in various charts, figures and numbers. Peridot's fingers made contact with the monitor and her neon green eyes flashed blue for a moment before new information appeared before her.

 _I thought as much. Bringing them back isn't going to be viable in the slightest._ She shuddered for a brief moment at the nightmare that could have manifest, but quickly banished the thought with a good shake of her head. _Good thing I removed the incubators from the wall. That would have been a mess. I'll fix you guys soon enough. I can't afford mistakes._ Her fingers, moving individually and deftly on an ethereal keyboard, input more information. A picture of a creature that absolutely baffled even her mind appeared: A child of a relatively short and thick build. He has curly, dark brown hair and eyes. He wears a reddish-pink T-shirt with a yellow star in the center of it. He also wears blue jeans and light reddish-pink sandals. And, lastly, his gem, a rose quartz which Peridot only knew of one previous wielder.

Peridot groaned and with a gesture of her head the image floated to one side of the barn and another, more familiar image appeared before her, the gem known as Rose Quartz. Though Peridot would never admit it openly, the soft, understanding eyes of Rose was quite calming. _Why is your gem embedded in a Stev- err, human?_ The image of Steven came side by side with the image of Rose and Peridot put her mind on overdrive at an attempt to solve this mystery. _He isn't a fusion. I know that for a fact._ Peridot's eyes briefly glanced over at something reminiscent of a sinister tuning for that housed a triangular object at its center. She blinked in a moment of realization then scoffed. "Yeah, as if that's a possibility." She said aloud to the emptiness of the barn as if to reassure herself.

A chair matching her color scheme rose from the ground behind her and she sat then crossed her legs and rested her chin on her arm as her mind turned to other things. _I haven't heard from Jasper since the crash. Oh well, she served her purpose after all. Frankly her superiority complex is quite annoying. Though... she is strong, I guess unlike myself._ She sighed and pushed the thought of her co-worker from mind and shifted to rest her head on the opposite arm. _What do I do next? The tech on this planet is so primitive and I'm stuck here now!_ The thought of being stranded on Earth began to eat at her, fostering a sudden seething hatred at the irony that now knew what it felt like to be prisoner.

 _Stupid Crystal Gems!_ Peridot inwardly hissed, gritting her teeth. _Traitors! Our home is on the brink of disaster and you protect our best bet at survival?!_ Pent up frustration and anger melded and festered, the various displays around the room began to glitch and rapidly change though Peridot was ignorant to the happening. _They think they are the only ones that lost friends in that asinine war?!_ By now tears hung on the edges of Peridots eyes and sparks jumped from her grinding teeth as the slowly began to chip and crack. _What is one stupid planet in the face of your own! Why do they fight us?!_ Pain began to elope with her flurry of emotions and in the midst of the room going haywire, she felt a small pressure on her leg and with a caustic glare she looked down to see one of her flask robonoids attempting to scale her. It was then that she winced at the blistering pain in her mouth. "Oh 'thoot." Peridot sighed with a small lisp. "I really need 'tho keep my emo'thion'th in 'theck."

She sat upright then leaned down, extending her arm to allow her little follower to climb onto her shoulder and after a small spritz at her teeth, she was good as new. Peridot allowed the contraption to find its own way down and curiously observed it for the first time in a while as it took interest a mouse and proceeded to chase it. She chuckled and reclined in her seat, recalling the day she perfected them. _I wonder what Citrine and the others would think? I hate to admit it but I could use the assistance with this planet... I feel so..._ Peridot choked for a moment as she searched for the word to fit the emptiness that began to grip her. The realization of the word only served to dash her confidence even more. _So useless._ She groaned and went limp in her chair, hands dangling from the sides as she stared at the ceiling. _What am I supposed to do?_

As if picking up on its user's thoughts and emotions, the monitor beeped and the images of Steven and Rose vanished and was replaced with a single photograph of four friends in what appeared to be some sort of lavish laboratory. Peridot's attention was drawn to the image and immediately recognized everyone in their matching lab coats. The deeper blue gem, a quite lanky woman cut her visible eye to the side through her mess of pale azure hair and a small smile tugged at her lips. She cautiously held a pair of smoking culture tubes safely away from the trio hugged together. On either side of Peridot in the picture were two men wearing goofy smiles. The tallest in the picture, a yellowish, orange-red gem with short, black hair pointed towards the camera with a small flame at the tip of his finger. Peridot recalled the ensuing explosion and quietly giggled to herself. Lastly was the short and stocky bright yellow gem that clung to a flustered, but genuinely smiling Peridot. His gem was exposed on his chest as his lab coat was the only one open which showed off his chiseled features despite being the shortest one in the picture.

Peridot reveled in the memory for a moment which brought a small but firm smile to her face. _I have to succeed for you guys._ She hastily wiped her eyes and dismissed the photo with a flick of her wrist. _That was... odd. Though I suppose gem technology does take after its creators._ She stood from her seat and crossed her hands behind her back as the display shifted once more, now displaying a pulsing signal of sorts. _After I report in I guess I should do a bit more reconnaissance and research. Despite the damage the humans have caused to this planet, that can be fixed._ _It falls to me to shape this world to be suitable for you guys sacrifice and I think I know where to start._ As Peridot stood waiting the image of Steven reappeared at her side and she smirked. _The mystery of this child is worth observation. I don't know what you did to this creature, Rose. But I intend to find out very soon. Whatever he is, he'll be a threat no doubt, I have to figure out how to deal with him and the traitors._

The images of Amethyst, Garnet, and Pearl joined Steven's. A myriad of questions began bombarding Peridot's mind some of which she had an answer or to for, a theory for some, and a hypothesis for most. But not many to answer the big question. "What are you, Steven?" She absentmindedly muttered, narrowing her eyes and focusing on him in particular.

 _"_ Aah, Peridot." Came a disturbingly smooth voice from the display that immediately tore Peridot from her mental musings. "I had hoped you kicked that dreadful monologuing habit. Oh well. I trust you are bringing me good news?"


End file.
